Building History

The San Francisco architectural firm of the Reid Brothers designed the Orpheus Theatre for the Tunstead Estate in 1919. The owners signed a 20-year lease of the facility to exhibitors Max Blumenfeld and Sam Gordon in 05/1919. (See Joe Vogel, Cinema Treasures.org, "Rafael Film Center," published 09/26/2014, accessed 12/04/2018.) The Orpheus opened on 01/21/1920.

James and Merritt Reid became prolific designers of more than two dozen movie theatres in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area during the 1910s and 1920s.

Demolition

The Orpheus Theatre burned on 11/29/1937. its owners reconstructed the building as the "Rafael Theatre," reopening it in 06/1938.

PCAD id: 22576